Long Beach voters have decisions to make

LONG BEACH - Three Long Beach City Council seats are up for grabs in Tuesday's election, and for gadflies observing California's seventh-largest city, there is plenty of political juice.

Candidates have clashed with varying intensities in an almost four-month campaign season, with much of the discussion centering on the largest issue facing Long Beach - ongoing and evolving budget deficits.

Last month, city financial forecasts estimated $26.1 million in red ink in the next three fiscal years.

That bleak projection grew last week by another $7.7 million, to $33.8million, when planners calculated increased pension obligations after the state's public employee retirement fund lowered its investment return expectations.

Of the three contests, only the port-and-downtown 2nd District features an incumbent - or at least, the only one that will appear on the ballot.

That's because in the Los Altos-centered 4th District, the sitting councilman is running for a third term as a write-in candidate against two challengers. Three members of council have tested the two-term limit law voters approved in 1992; all have failed.

In the most wide-open race, a pair of well-backed and well- financed candidates will square off to represent the 8th District, which includes parts of Bixby Knolls and North Long Beach.

There are nine council districts in Long Beach.

The even-numbered districts are up for election this year, but there will be no race for the 6th District, where Councilman Dee Andrew has no opposition. The 6th District is located in Central Long Beach.

Election polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

If no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, then a runoff election will be scheduled for June 5.

Winners will take office on July 17.

The incumbent

In the 2nd District, Councilwoman and Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal faces two challengers: Janet Ballantyne, a sponsor relations manager at a financial firm and president of a downtown homeowners association; and Mike Kamer, a volunteer coordinator and graduate student at Cal State Long Beach.

If nothing else, the race has been a referendum on Lowenthal, who moved to the council from the Long Beach Unified School District board in 2006 after an 11-way contest to replace Councilman Dan Baker, who had resigned.

Ballantyne and Kamer have cast themselves as alternatives to Lowenthal and accused her of inadequately listening to and communicating with constituents.

Ballantyne, 55, wants to reduce business regulations and fees and improve parking to help businesses grow downtown.

But she said she made a last- minute decision to run because she believed residents "weren't being heard on the PBID issue."

Since 1998, the Downtown Property Based Improvement District has levied a self- imposed tax on commercial property owners to pay for services above what the city provides.

Downtown Long Beach Associates, a business group, wants to expand the fee to include 2,500 residential property owners in the area.

The proposal has met resistance and won Ballantyne supporters among those who want Lowenthal to oppose the tax. The councilwoman has declined to take a position for or against the fee.

Kamer, 29, says he "wants to be the voice of District 2."

His top goal is to build a digital system, funded by grants, that would allow district residents to weigh in on the issue of the day. Kamer would make his decision based on their feedback.

Kamer illustrates his community-activist take on governing by offering his solution to a plan by Gov. Jerry Brown to save $23 million by cutting funding for housing stray animals after three days. The state would not force shelters to euthanize pets, but would no longer pay them for holding animals past that time.

Kamer is pushing for a community fostering program, with residents housing the pets and signing waivers.

Lowenthal, 42, seems to be in political cruise control while taking on her two less-experienced opponents, though her campaign says she isn't taking re-election for granted.

She parries charges that she won't take sides to the satisfaction of aggrieved parties by saying that it's her job to deliberate on issues fairly, independent of the "politics of the election."

If re-elected, Lowenthal said she intends to continue a "back to basics" style of responding to residents' concerns about their day-to-day quality of life.

Her office points out that she has worked to add 1,200 parking spaces, fill potholes, improve other infrastructure and improve water quality in Long Beach.

Lowenthal has been endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, the Long Beach Democratic Club, the California National Organization for Women, the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club, other organizations and various current and former elected officials, including Mayor Bob Foster.

Ballantyne and Kamer haven't garnered any major endorsements.

A term-limit challenge

When Daryl Supernaw and John Watkins decided to run for the 4th District, they thought they wouldn't have to face Councilman Patrick O'Donnell since the two-term council member and high school teacher had set his sights on Long Beach's new Assembly seat.

But that was before Assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, decided to run for re-election, compelling O'Donnell to drop his bid.

O'Donnell then announced that he would seek a third term as a write-in candidate, which is the only way he can run because of term limits. If the election goes to a run-off and O'Donnell has one of the top two spots, his name will then appear on the ballot.

Now, the three council candidates are squaring off in a race that has had its share of fireworks.

Supernaw, 60, is best- known for his activist work to fill the Atherton Ditch.

He touts his experience as a business marketing consultant as a salve to heal the city's budget woes and says he will conduct a line-by-line analysis of Long Beach's ledger while searching for new revenue from sources such as corporate naming rights.

Supernaw hasn't been shy about criticizing O'Donnell's decision to run, and he publicly speculates on what the councilman may do when Bonnie Lowenthal is termed out in 2014.

O'Donnell, 46, has claimed he won't quit the council to run for the Assembly, but he has refused to promise so.

As his first priority, O'Donnell lists public safety, with infrastructure, parks and a balanced budget close behind.

Despite entering the race later than other candidates, O'Donnell, long noted for his strong union support, leads all fundraisers this year, with $35,648 in contributions, according to the City Clerk's Office.

His endorsement list is long and includes the Long Beach Police Officers Association, the Long Beach Firefighters Association, the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters, the Long Beach Democratic Club and the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.

At the start of the race, Watkins, 51, seemed poised to make a strong showing.

After an almost 30-year career as a Long Beach police officer, Watkins retired in December 2010 to run for the council.

He hit the campaign trail early, supporting improvements to public safety while using an insider's knowledge to suggest cost-conscious solutions such as sending recruits to the Los Angeles police academy as an alternative to paying to restart Long Beach's.

Watkins, whose second priority is spurring business growth, was endorsed by the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, and officials with the city's police and fire unions said if O'Donnell weren't running, they probably would have endorsed Watkins, too.

But his campaign hit a snag last month when it was revealed that he was forced to surrender his contractor's license in 1995 after the state determined he had done deficient work in the remodeling of a Rossmoor home. He hasn't paid restitution on the $115,000 job.

Watkins defended himself by saying he didn't agree with the charges but didn't have the money at the time to contest them. All work, he said, was done based on plans approved by appropriate regulatory agencies.

Watkins also took on questions about his participation in a 2010 "donning and doffing" class action lawsuit, filed by about 900 Long Beach police officers for allegedly unpaid time putting on uniforms and gear, waiting in court, attending briefings and completing other routine tasks.

He said he signed on to the suit only to receive compensation for hours spent on call, at home, as a supervising sergeant at the Long Beach Airport. His shifts required him to be available between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m., but be paid for 10 hours of work.

Long Beach agreed to pay $300,000 in attorney fees and give 47 vacation hours to the 883 officers then in the Police Department. The deal allowed Watkins, who retired the month the settlement was reached, to put his hours in a sick bank that can be used for post-retirement medical expenses.

A vacant seat

The filing deadline for candidates in Tuesday's election was Jan. 13, but the campaign for Long Beach's 8th District didn't begin in earnest until almost a month later, when incumbent Councilwoman Rae Gabelich announced she wouldn't seek a third term as a write-in.

Gabelich immediately threw her support behind labor negotiator Al Austin against Lillian Kawasaki, an elected director with the Water Replenishment District of Southern California.

Austin, 43, has run for council before, losing in the 6th District to current Councilman Dee Andrews in 2007 by fewer than 80 votes.

Austin and his family have lived in the 8th District since 2001. He has said he rented an apartment in the 6th District for that campaign after residents and community leaders asked him to run.

Public safety is Austin's No. 1 priority, and he favors funding a police academy, which has been cut from the budget four years in a row, and continuing the recent launch of a lateral fire academy.

He also says he will "ferociously" work to fill empty storefronts along the Atlantic Avenue corridor and wants to push residents to be more involved in their neighborhood.

Kawasaki, 61, is retired from a more than 30-year career with the city of Los Angeles.

Her assignments included leading the city's Community Development Department, where she oversaw 500 employees and a $300 million budget.

That experience, she believes, qualifies her above other candidates when it comes to managing the needs of Long Beach.

Reining in budget deficits will involve finding efficiencies and eliminating duplication, Kawasaki says, as well as ensuring that the city receives its proper share of tax revenue from the state.

She too supports restarting the police academy, but actions must be tempered by the ability to pay new recruits, she says.

On the business side, Kawasaki's ideas include hiring an ombudsman to make government more accessible to small businesses.

Though Austin and Kawasaki haven't directly engaged each other, the 8th District contest is noticeable for the city officials and groups lined up behind the respective campaigns.

Austin is Gabelich's chosen successor and is backed by Long Beach's police and fire unions, its strongest labor groups. He is also supported by Andrews, 9th District Councilman Steve Neal and former council members Val Lerch, Rob Webb, Tonia Reyes Uranga and Doris Topsy-Elvord.

Kawasaki is endorsed by Mayor Bob Foster and has received a donation from 3rd District Councilman Gary DeLong, both of whom frequently skirmish with Gabelich on budget and other issues.

Other Kawasaki endorsements include the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce, the Sierra Club and the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters.

Austin is also the approved candidate of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and a host of other labor organizations.

Army veteran and college student Gustavo Rivera is also on the ballot for the 8th District, but he hasn't run an active campaign.